Lee Thomas is a master storyteller whose writing chops are on par, if not slightly above, most current best-selling authors. "The German," the latest title from this local Lambda Literary Award and Bram Stoker Award winner, is a powerful narrative about childhood, homosexuality, war and prejudice.

Set in a small Texas town after World War II, "The German" tells the story of Ernst Lang, a German covered in scars who was once a military leader for the Nazis. Although Lang now lives a normal life on the outside, he is haunted by a violent past. A man that has experienced firsthand the best and the worst of what war has to offer, Lang is a complex character who embodies conflicting traits of kindness and violence, and his homosexuality sets him apart as a rather unexpected character in contemporary fiction.

Lang's life, along with the entire town of Barnard, begins to change when a young man is found in the woods with an emptied torso and a small box in his mouth. The small box contains a message scribbled in German and, in a town full of German immigrants, cultural tensions soon begin to flare. As more bodies appear, the entire town turns into a hateful vortex of uncontrollable anxiety. The mystery holds even as some youngsters become sure of who's behind the killings and take action into their own hands. By the time the bloody resolution rolls around, the story has exposed the us to the worst side of humanity and the way we can rationalize our most despicable actions.

"The German" works on many levels. For starters, Thomas grabs the reader with a strong introduction and manages to keep the momentum going until the last word of the book. Second, the prose is as beautiful as it is effective and pulls no punches when it comes to violence or sex. The story is told from three perspectives: Ersnt Lang, a boy named Tim Randall and the town's Sheriff, Tom Rabbit. Thomas brilliantly switches hats without skipping a beat and offers the reader three distinct narrators with very different voices.

As the three characters interact throughout the novel, the reader is treated to a multiplicity of viewpoints that enrich the story and show each character's vulnerabilities. The Sherriff is a likeable character whose understanding of homosexuality borders on comedy but accurately portrays the time period. Tim is full of surprises and provides the sense of wonder and excitement that only a kid's voice can bring and Lang is a chillingly honest narrator with a dark past and a profound knowledge of the unpleasant and undeniable truths that surround society and war.

While the story plays with some supernatural elements, there's so much truth in what Thomas writes that its themes will stay with you long after you finish reading.